A Fateful Encounter
by TheEpicBoss95
Summary: Jake is just an ordinary 16 year old kid, excited to start his Pokemon journey. But any ideas of an ordinary journey are gone when he is kidnapped and dragged into the horrible organization of Pokemon underground trafficking, where he meets an Eevee that's hurt and abused. What kind of adventures will these 2 have together? Rated T for violence and language.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's notes: **Hello everybody! This is my first fanfiction! Woo! And what better to write a fanfiction about then the greatest thing of all time: Pokemon! So I hope all who read shall enjoy it! Now I do not own Pokemon or am associated with Pokemon. Pokemon belongs to Nintendo. ALRIGHT, with that out of the way, read and enjoy! But I must warn you, this first chapter, is EXTREMELY short. Like, so short, when this chapter hung out with it's friends, the other chapters would make fun of him for how short he is, driving him to the point of suicide. But we saved him! Because of his attempted suicide, he was never truly them same... no. Now he's Chapter 1/Prologue! lol but seriously, the chapter is ridiculously short. So please read this one and the next one. OKAY, ENOUGH RAMBLING! ENJOY!

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Chapter 1/ Prologue

The Journey Begins

My name is Jake. I'm just your average 16 year old kid with a dream of being a Pokemon master, like every other kid in the world. My story starts in Twinleaf town; my hometown, located in Sinnoh. Yeah I know what you're thinking: Why is this kid 16 and still hasn't started his Pokemon journey? Well for that you can thank my lovely, and as you could probably guess, overprotective mom. "Pokemon are too dangerous." Or "Raising Pokemon is too big a responsibility for a 10 year old kid." Blah blah blah... I've heard it a million times. And let's not forget about the great encouragement from my friends when I talk and video chat with them on the machines at the Pokemon Center. "Ha! My *insert Pokemon name here* is so strong now! How's your Pokemon? Oh wait, you still haven't left Twinleaf!" Yeah, GREAT encouragement…. BUT, that's all behind me now; for today is the day I finally set out to fulfill my dream of becoming a Pokemon master!

"…and it is a beautiful day in Sinnoh! We have clear skies all across the region! It's a great day to go outside to take a walk, hang with friends or just to enjoy Pokemon and their beauty! Why just this morning…" Click! I turn off my alarm, hop out of bed, stretching and rubbing my eyes.

"Today's the day! The day you've waited 6 agonizing years longer compared to everyone else to start your adventures. But today is the day!" I rush to the bathroom to take a quick shower and get dressed. After I finish I take a look at myself in the mirror to make sure I look as good as I feel. I put some stray hairs back in their place and make myself look as awesome as I can. I finish my morning routine with a snap of both fingers toward the mirror. "Lookin' good!"

I rush downstairs to find my mother cooking breakfast. I could smell it all the way upstairs. Eggs, toast and bacon were perfectly arranged on a plate with a glass of orange juice next to it. I sit down and start digging in. "Don't eat too fast, or you'll choke!" I let out a sigh.

"Yes, mother…" And I continually demolish the food she has prepared. Even if my mom is overprotective, she's still a great cook.

As I finish the last drops of orange juice, I tell my mom thanks for the breakfast and head for the door.

"Wait!" My mother said in a saddened tone "Do you have your-" Interrupting her sentence I say confidently

"Mom, before you ask, I have everything I need. I have my money, six Poke Balls, and all of my clothes in my backpack. I'm a young adult now and I can take care of myself." Although I knew it made her sad to see me finally go, she still managed a faint smile to know that her 'little boy' was confident and off on adventures of his own. She leaned down and kissed my forehead and said goodbye to me, with tears forming in her eyes. I start to head for the door again, and as I walk out I turn around and waved goodbye.

Well, off I go! I felt great; on top of the world. Instead of going straight to Professor Rowan to get my first Pokemon, I decided I'd visit Verity Lake one last time. I had many memories of that lake... My friends and I would play down by the lake all the time in the summer. I used to go fishing with my dad before he… before he passed away. So I thought I might as well visit it one last time before I set out. I walked up to the lakefront and it was just beautiful. The waves gently hitting the rocks, how the water was shimmering in the morning sun. I took a deep breath as I looked out over the lake. I stood there a moment when some rustling in the bushes snapped me out of my thoughts. I curiously walked over to see what it was. It didn't seem like a Pokemon, I didn't know what it was, it was just strange. So I just slowly crept over, scanning the area to try to determine what it was, but to no avail. Once I was only about two yards away, I heard a deep and raspy voice. "Now!" And before I knew what was happening I had my arms and legs were restricted by two men while a third man put a sack over my head and threw a single, solid punch to the side of my head, then started carrying me somewhere. The blow to the head caused me doze in and out of consciousness. During the moments I was conscious, I could hear the men talking but couldn't make out what they were saying. Something about money? I don't know, it was all fuzzy. I finally blacked out as I was continuously carried to an unknown destination…


	2. Chapter 2- The Duo Meet

**Author's Notes: **Hello! If you're reading this, then you must have read the pathetic, very short Chapter 1/Prologue. So, here's the first longer chapter. This one still isn't THAT long, but much better then the first one. Alright, I'm posting the first 3 chapters right now, so I won't have much information to tell you in these Author's Notes in this one or the next one. But look for something interesting in Chapter 4's! Have a read, give a review, I love you! PM me if you want to tell me anything!

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Chapter 2

The Duo Meet

My eyes slowly opened. I was on the ground, it was cold and damp. My eyes scanned the room looking for something to help me identify where I was, but there wasn't much to look at. I was in an enclosed area that looked like it was made of cement. There were no windows, the only source of light were lights with an orange-ish tint to them lining the ceiling that went from where I was all the way off in to the distance, dimly lighting the entire area. As I was finishing getting an idea of where I was, my eyes glanced over something that caused me to do a double take. I noticed that off in the distance; maybe fifteen or twenty feet, I saw three men. One of which was holding something; an object of some sort. It could have been the same three men that grabbed me at Verity Lakefront. But I had no idea if it was because I never got a good look at my kidnappers. Suddenly the man holding the object threw it very forcefully to the ground. Then, after a moment, the "object" stumbled to its feet. And then I knew exactly what it was. It was an Eevee

"Piece of shit Pokemon." The man said, as he kicked the Eevee back to the ground. Then it stood up again. "You're worthless. Buying you was a waste of money." And again the man bent his leg and slammed his foot into Eevee's side, knocking it off its feet and back into the nearby wall, where it finally fell to the ground, landing on its side. And the poor soul stood up again. "The only reason you won the fights that you did was because your opponents were weak. You would never win in a real fight. And I hate losing money." And this time one of the two men that were just standing helped the man kick the Eevee. Once again knocking it off its feet, slamming its back on the wall, the finally falling to the ground.

_That's what this was about? The Eevee wasn't doing well in some Pokemon battles so they were abusing it like that?_ Then to my amazement, the poor, brave soul stood up yet again.

"I'll just leave your body here for the Pidgey to pick your bones clean." The other two men laughed and this time all three of them kicked the poor Eevee a third time. One kicking its back hip, the second one kicking its abdomen, and the third man; the one who was talking to it, gave it a hard blow to the side of its head. The Eevee was knocked backward with great force from the three men kicking it at the same time. Again Eevee fell to the ground. I could tell by the way that it didn't even attempt to catch itself or get back up that that final blow to the head had knocked it unconscious. After a moment the man started to chuckle. "Ha, I bet it's already dead. I told you that this Pokemon was a piece of shit, an absolute waste of money." The other two men started to laugh as well. The previous owner took one last look at the unconscious Pokemon, and then he spat on it and started to walk away. The other men did the same thing, and then jogged to catch up with the man that already started to walk away. "Alright men…" The previous Eevee owner said. "Tonight is going to be filled with beer, bets and Pokemon fights!" The two other men cheered as I watched them walk away. After a while they a left turn and were no longer in my sight. _Pokemon fights? I've never heard it worded that way before. Usually it's a "Pokemon battle" or even a "Pokemon match."_ But I didn't really think anything of it at the time.

I finally picked myself up and stumbled to my feet. I almost fell over but caught myself on a pillar that was next to me. I put my hand to my head and let out a grunt. I had a raging head ache. I stood there for a moment, trying to regain my composure. After I was able to stand up without feeling dizzy, I realized I didn't have my bag. My eyes started frantically searching for it. I quickly located it about ten feet away; directly under one of the many lights across the ceiling. I quickly approached it, only to find its contents spilled on to the floor. I searched the pile of my belongings, only to find my clothes. All of my money was gone. I then remember my other valuable possession: my Poke Balls. I moved my hand down to my belt, only to find my Poke Balls gone, too. All six of them. "Great." I said aloud. "Just perfect." I said as I put what was left of my belongings into my back pack and then swung it around and put it back on. As soon as I got my arms in place, I looked up, remembering the Eevee. I then looked around, quickly scanning the area I was in, making sure none of my stuff was scattered elsewhere. I didn't see anything, so I turned and started to run toward it.

Upon arriving to the Eevee, I noticed its abdomen slightly rising, the sinking back down. "It's still breathing, thank Arceus." I said to myself, slightly out of breath from the short run over here. One of the first things I noticed was the scars on its face. There were two that stuck out the most. The first one on the left side of its mouth, the skin was cut and it had healed in separate parts, resulting in its skin being pulled apart when it opened its mouth, making its mouth look a little wider on the side. The second scar was under its right eye, about two-and-a-half to three inches long. When I got closer, I noticed something that made me cringe to look at. Its front right leg was mangled and bent the wrong way in the middle; obviously broken. So after getting kicked several times by its "owner" and his friends, AND with a broken leg, the small Pokemon kept getting up. I was amazed. I bent down and carefully picked the poor thing up, its fur was dirty and greasy feeling, it was matted and had patches of blood that had dried and became black. There was also a stream of blood that was running from the left corner of its mouth that was fresh; still red.

I had no idea how to get out of wherever I was, so I just shifted the unconscious Pokemon in my arms to try to get it in a position that would be comfortable for it. And I just started walking. Walking in the same direction as the three men. When I got to the same area where the three men had turned, I could hear many voices yelling and shouting. It was very faint, but it was still there. I could have either kept going straight or taken that left, where I heard the voices. And since so far it was the only sign of life, I figured it must lead to a way out. So I started walking toward the voices. Every couple of minutes I would put my hand in front of Eevee's snout and keep it there until I felt a breath, just to re-assure myself that the Eevee was still alive and there was still hope. The voices were loud by now and I was almost at the end of the corridor, where it turned to the right. Upon arriving to the right turn, I emerged from the tunnel opening into a large room. And it was absolute chaos.

To my right there was a stand that said "BETS" with a man behind it yelling things to a group of people standing around it giving the man money. To my left was a building with a sign on the front that said "Buy a Pokemon." _"Buy a Pokemon?" _I was trying to take in everything that was happening and figure out what was going on. And finally, directly in front of me was a large fenced in area with hundreds of people all around the fence jumping, screaming, shouting, cheering and booing at what was going on inside the fence. The floor was littered with beer cans. As I got closer, I could see more. It was a stadium of some sort, lit up with giant lights and I could see a large electronic board displaying the text "Bulbasaur V.S Houndour" But it wasn't your average fight. I was shocked at what I saw. Bulbasaur had one of the big leaves on its back torn off, revealing bloody flesh and a stream of blood falling to the ground. Houndour had a large gash across its side with blood pouring out of it. The Houndour's right ear was missing, blood also pouring out of it. And the battle continued. Bulbasaur used Take Down, knocking the Houndour on the ground. Immediately after the attack, Bulbasaur whipped out its vines and wrapped them around the Houndours neck and tightened them. The Houndour, trying to escape death's grip, used Ember on Bulbasaur's vines, but that just seemed to make it tighten its grip. The Houndour thrashed around until their movements were slowed, and it eventually went limp. Bulbasaur continued to suspend its limp victim in the air by its neck. After a moment the Bulbasaur tightened its vines one last time and a loud crack could be heard, sending chills down my spine. And then the Houndour dropped to the blood soaked ground. About five seconds went by, and then an announcer said loudly over the speaker system "We have a winner!" The crowd erupted with cheers and boos.

I knew exactly what the place was. It was a site for Pokemon underground trafficking; slave trade. And to top it all off, it was next to an arena. Not for friendly Pokemon "battles" or "matches," but fights. Fights to the death. Fights to the death for the amusement and money lust for sick human beings. I need to get out of here. I was making my way around the arena when an older guy, maybe in his seventies stopped me, looked down at the Eevee, then back at me and said

"You entering that thing, kid?" He said in a typical 'old man' voice. "It's $100 per Pokemon you enter, if you win the tournament, you could go home $5,000 richer. But if you don't win…" He chuckled "…then you can kiss your Pokemon's sorry ass goodbye" He continued to laugh.

"I'm not entering; I'll be on my way now." I tried to say as firmly as I could.

"Your loss." He said, chuckling as he went to the next person with a Pokemon.

I had to get out of this nightmare of a place. I made my way around the arena to keep walking through the tunnel. I started to jog, just to get away from that place. At this point I could barely hear the crowd and started walking again. I checked again to make sure Eevee was still breathing, and I let out a sigh of relief, feeling its warm breath on my hand. There were absolutely no windows. I hadn't seen a single one since I've been here. I finally just figured I must have been underground. I was walking along this tunnel when I saw it. At the end of the tunnel, which was about half a mile away, it turned right. And I could see it. Light! Not orange-ish light that I've been looking at for the past two hours, but sunlight! "Finally!" I said out loud.

I started to pick up my pace, excited to finally get out of there. At some point between right then and the next minute, the Eevee woke up. It looked up at me. Noticing its movement I looked down at it. But the second I made eye contact, it swung its head back around and suck its fangs into my wrist. I yelled in pain and dropped the Eevee on to the ground. Upon hitting the ground its front right leg, the broken one, gave out and the poor Eevee let out a cry of pain. A feminine cry. It was a female Eevee.

"Why did you bite me?!" I exclaimed.

"You're not my master!"

"And you want to go back to your master because he treated you SO WELL, right?"

"He treated better than most of my masters!" That hurt me to hear her say that, this Eevee has been through some tough things…

"And how many masters have you had?" I asked

"…I don't know…a lot."

I knelt down next to the Eevee. "Listen, I'm not going to hurt you. I want to help you. New lets go get you patched up and the leg fixed, okay?" The Eevee looked at the ground.

"…But what about my old master?" she asked, looking back at me. I thought a moment, and then proudly and confidently I said:

"I'll be your master."

I felt something inside me when I said that. I felt a sense of pride and responsibility rush over me, and a smile grew across my face. I bent down to pick her up, but despite what I said, she was still reluctant and attempted to scurry away. Limping, not getting very far and a look of pain in her face from trying to move quickly with a broken leg, I easily caught up to her and carefully picked her up; trying not to hurt her more that she already was. Upon grabbing her, she again tried to bite my arm. This time, somewhat expecting it, I quickly grabbed her jaw with my hand. Now immobilized, she just looked at me. And I just looked back at her, I again noticed the scars on her face and I felt a wave of sadness over me, but my smile never left my face. I resumed eye contact, and then said in a warm, inviting voice with the smile still on my face "You're coming home with me, okay?"

Still opposing the idea, she started to bite harder on my hand holding her jaw. But I just started walking toward the light. Eventually her grip on my hand loosened and she closed her mouth and just sat in my arms as I walked. After about ten minutes, I finally made it to the right turn and saw them, stairs! Stairs that lead up, and out of here. The exit was about five feet wide, but about four of those five feet were blocked by tree branches; leaving only a small opening for me to squeeze through. After I was through, I looked into the sunset and took a deep breath. "Ah, finally, fresh oxygen!" I said, happy to be out of there. I looked back at where I came from, and the entrance was pretty well camouflaged. But I guess that makes sense, considering EVERYTHING that was being done down there was illegal. Judging by the way the sun was already halfway under the horizon; I knew I needed to find some place to sleep. I noticed a place relatively close to where I was that was behind a large tree. Being back there made us pretty well hidden, so I wasn't very afraid of some wild Pokemon running into us in the middle of the night.

I set Eevee down, causing her to let out a whimper. I took my clothes out of my bag and set them on the ground, trying to make a soft area for Eevee to sleep on. After I had all of my clothes and had tried to fluff them up as best as I could, I noticed her once again trying to limp away. I just let out a sigh, and then proceeded to pick her up and place her on the makeshift bed. I sat down next to her and looked at her, but she just looked at the ground.

"Listen…" I said in a soft voice. "I know you've been passed around a lot, abused, and forced to do things you never wanted to do, but I'm going to help you. But you have to help me by not trying to run every time I turn my back, okay?" The Eevee just continued to look at the ground, and finally answered. "That's what most of my masters say… And then they make my fight so they win money…" Hearing her say that crushed my heart. This poor Eevee has suffered so much…

By now the sun was gone and you could see the stars. "I understand if you don't trust me…" I said softly. "But at least for right now…try to get a good night sleep." She didn't answer and just laid her head down. I laid down beside her and put my arm around her. When I did this, she tensed herself; as if bracing for a hit. _Was it that bad?_ _Did she get hit and abused so often that she naturally tensed up when I touched her by simply putting my arm around her? Poor thing…_

I felt tears start to form in my eyes. After a moment I heard her softly snoring, causing a smile to return to my face, knowing she was soundly sleeping. Shortly after that I started to doze. And before I knew it we were both asleep…


	3. Chapter 3- Finally Together

**Author's Notes: **Alright, here's Chapter 3! Not much to say here, I hope you enjoy the next chapter! Have a read, give a review, I love you! PM me if you want to tell me anything!

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Chapter 3

Finally Together

I awoke to the sound of chirping Starly. It was dawn; the sun was just coming up. I stretched and let out a yawn, then rubbed my eyes. Then suddenly my right eye started to burn. I looked at my right hand and it was covered in blood. I looked down at Eevee. I was glad she stayed there through the night; maybe she was starting to trust me. I knelt next to her body, which was still asleep, and searched it for the bleeding wound, I searched her whole body until I located where the blood was coming from; her mouth.

_Oh no…_ _This constant bleeding from the mouth probably means she has internal bleeding, in her lungs._ A cold feeling rushed over me as I thought to myself. _Maybe she's not sleeping…_ I put my hand over her bloody mouth and waited. 5 year-long seconds went by, then I finally felt it…her breath. I can't even explain how relieved I was, but if there was one thing I knew for certain, it was that I needed to get her to a Pokemon Center, now! But as soon as I started to pick her up, she jumped to her feet and quickly moved just a few feet away, stumbling over her broken leg.

"I'm awake!" She said quickly. "I'm awake, please don't hit me…" When she finished that sentence, she coughed, spitting some blood on the ground. Again a feeling of sadness rushed over me when she said that, making me think of all the abuse she's gone through… I threw my now blood-soaked clothes back in my bag, swung it around my shoulders, and then proceeded to walk toward Eevee to pick her up. And just like last night when I put my arm around her, she closed her eyes and braced herself for a hit. I just let out a sigh and picked her tensed body up and started to run, looking for the pathway. I needed to get to a town. Eevee the relaxed her muscles and looked up at me. I looked at her for a moment, gave her a quick smile, the continued to focus on where I was running. The last thing I wanted to do was trip on something and drop her; injuring her more. After about 20 minutes of running , I finally found a path and started following it.

Nothing interesting happened the whole time I ran. I saw some Staravia playing with a Roselia and a pack of Bidoof on my way. After about 15 minutes of running, I finally saw the tips of buildings in the distance. Encouraged by finally seeing a city, I increased my running speed. I had no idea what city it was, I just knew I needed to get there and find the Pokemon Center. I finally arrived at the city, but still I couldn't slow down or rest. I frantically searched the city for the Pokemon Center.

There was a lot of stuff going on in the city. There were men doing construction on what looked like a new building, with a Machamp carrying 4 steel beams; one in each hand. I saw a Delibird flying around delivering mail. There was lots people rushing around and a lot of kids playing with other children and Pokemon in harmony. After searching around the huge city for 15 or 20 minutes, I finally found the Pokemon Center.

I burst inside, causing the 5 or so people that were in there to give me a weird look. I rushed up to the front desk and placed Eevee on the counter. Nurse Joy was doing something on the computer. When I sat Eevee on the counter, she looked up with a smile.

"Hello! How may I…help…you…" At the same rate that she slowed her talking, her smile disappeared and her eyes sunk from mine to Eevee. "What happened to this Eevee?!" She said, looking sternly at me.

"It's a long story…" I said quickly and panted as I said it. "She has a broken leg and I think she may have internal bleeding, in her lungs."

She called Chansey over and she brought a stretcher. She carefully placed Eevee on it, and then started to move toward the double-doors in the back of the hallway to the left of the counter, leading to the operating rooms. I walked right with them. Chansey ran ahead and opened the doors and Nurse Joy kept pushing. But as soon as Eevee saw the medical equipment and all the machinery, she started to freak out and attempted to get out the stretcher. I stopped her attempt to leave.

"What's wrong?" I tried to ask in a calm voice.

"N-No! Don't put me back in the machines! I-I'll be your slave for free! Just please don't make me!" She frantically said.

I wanted to cry. _The "machines?" What kind of horrible, terrible things have heartless people made this poor Eevee go through?_

Nurse Joy was now looking at me with a death glare. I looked back at Eevee. "Don't worry, these people will help you." I said, trying to comfort her, but to no avail. She was breathing heavily and her eyes were darting around the room.

Nurse Joy then stopped me and said "You're not allowed any farther, you have to wait out in the lobby." Before I had any chance to react, she was already in the room and the doors closed behind her. I walked back out of the hallway and into the main room. I sat down in one of the chairs with everybody there looking at me. I heard the people muttering amongst themselves. I heard words like "terrible trainer" and "irresponsible" I knew they thought I was a horrible trainer, but they didn't know the whole story, and I wasn't going to bother to explain. I head a "ding" and I looked up. The red light with a syringe on it turned on; which indicated operation. All I had to do now is wait…

Considering how bad Eevee's condition was, I figured all of the medical procedures that needed to be done would take a while. So I decided I'd withdraw some money from my savings because all of the cash I had on me was stolen, and then stop at the Poke Mart to buy some essentials. I walked over to the machines that are in every Pokemon Center. And I should have expected this, but shortly after I logged on, I got a video call request from my mom. I smiled, knowing that she's probably been just sitting at our computer just waiting for me to get on so she can check up on me. I accepted it and the little window displaying what was seen by the camera on the machine; what my mom would see, came up. And at first glance I didn't even recognize myself. The right side of my face was a little swollen from where I was punched. I'd imagine it was worse before and by now gone down a little. And on my left cheek there was a small stream of now-dried blood. I couldn't let my mom see me like this, Even if I had just a small scratch on my face she'd suggest I go home. If she saw me like this, she'd probably literally have a heart attack. So I quickly hung up, and sent her this message: "Hi mom, everything is fine, no need to worry! :) But I'm in a hurry and need to go. Bye!" I hope that message convinced her that I was fine. I accessed the ATM function and withdrew $200 of the $600 I had in my savings, and finally headed back out into the city.

Just like before, the city was still swarming with people. I should probably figure out what city I was in. I saw a tall man in a suit with a briefcase. As he walked by, I looked up at him to ask him, but my eyes kept going past his head until I was almost looking straight up. I was looking at a very tall tower with many satellites on top of it. I recognized this distinct land mark. It was the television tower, for Jubilife TV. I was in Jubilife City. A wandered around for a while, trying to follow the signs and get to the Poke Mart. About 15 minutes later, I finally located the distinct building with the blue roof. I walked in and looked at the rows and rows of shelves with goods all organized and neatly displayed. I started walking down the aisles, looking for what I needed. I got 3 Poke Balls, one of which I planned to use on Eevee. Some potions, new clothes; the outfit I had on was the only clothes I had. My other clothes were blood-stained from Eevee and ruined. This made me think of her_. I hope she's doing alright…_ I kept looking for anything I needed, and then I came to the aisle that had nothing but different brands of Poke Block. I knew I would need food for Eevee, so I started browsing the selection. It all looked the same, just a bunch of processed packages of Poke Block. So I decided I'd make my own. I went to the little machines they had by the aisle that were there specifically to help customers find what kind of Poke Block they needed for their Pokemon. I searched "Eevee" and a list of ingredients came up, along with a printable paper that had directions on how to prepare the Poke Block, which was convenient. I walked around the store until I located the assortment of berries and seasons that I needed. Once I had everything, I headed to the counter to checkout. Everything I had ran me about $100. Once I purchased everything, I put the clothes and potions in my back pack, the Poke Balls on my belt, and the ingredients along with the instructional paper I left in the bag they gave me. As I walked out, my stomach started to hurt and grumbled loudly and I realized something: I hadn't eaten in the past day and a half, I was starving!

I walked on the sidewalk and stopped at the first fast-food place I could find, which didn't take me very long. When I got in I ordered a double cheeseburger with a large fry and a Root Beer. It was all gone very quickly, I really was starving. I left the fast-food place and was headed back to the Pokemon Center, when I remembered something about Jubilife City: The Poketch Company. Jubilife City is where they make and distribute Poketches. So I figured I'd get one. It took me about 20 minutes to get to the building. It had a large lobby. And for such a big room there weren't very many people there. They only had the choice between a blue one and a pink one. So I obviously picked the blue one, bought it and was adjusting it on my wrist as I walked out. I was now finally headed back to the Pokemon Center.

Once I got there, I eagerly looked at the red light, to see if she was still being worked on. I was saddened to see it still on, and took a seat. _Was she okay? They've been working on her for a long time…_ I kept looking at the clock function on my Poketch. 5 minutes went by, then 10, 20, 30. _What if she didn't make it? What if I was too late? No, I need to stop thinking like that… If she didn't make it…I…_ Light tears were forming in my eyes_. Eevee had to make it, she just had to… _"Ding." This sound snapped me out of my thoughts, I looked up and I saw it: the light was off.

I literally jumped out of my seat. I ran over to the double-doors and stared at it, waiting for them to come out. After what felt like forever, Nurse Joy finally walked out, but Chansey and Eevee were nowhere to be seen. The smile on my face dropped instantly.

"W-Where's Eevee?" I managed to spit out.

Nurse Joy looked at and said "I'm afraid you can't see your Eevee anymore…"

I think my heart stopped. I clenched my fist and tightly closed my eyes, causing the tears that had already started to form to run down my face_. I was too late… I didn't try hard enough… I was too late! I couldn't save her…_

Nurse Joy then said "The condition of your Eevee was atrocious! I have the medical analysis right here…" She held up a piece of paper, then looked at it and started reading from it. "Pokemon had cuts and bruises covering virtually its entire body. Pokemon's fur was in such a condition that would suggest it hadn't been washed in months. Pokemon had a broken arm and 2 broken ribs; one of which had punctured the lung, causing internal bleeding." Once Nurse Joy finished reading the medical analysis, she put the paper on the counter and looked back at me. "I can't allow Eevee to return with you, so for now she's going to stay here."

My eyes snapped open. "What? S-She's alive?!"

"Yes, right now she's in the recovery room."

You don't even know how relieved I was. Words can't even describe how I felt, knowing she was alive after I truly believed she was gone. Then I realized what she had just said.

"Wait a minute, she's in alive and recovering… Why did you say I couldn't have her back?"

"We have enough evidence to have a case filed for Pokemon abuse…" As soon as she said that I heard the chimes that are played when the door opens. I looked over to see 2 police officers walking in. I looked back at Nurse Joy.

"Did… did you call the police on me?"

"I'm afraid we're going to have to place you under arrest." The 2 police men walked behind me and grabbed my arms to put hand-cuffs on me. I mildly resisted and looked back at Nurse Joy.

"No, no! I didn't do anything!" The officers forced my arms back and then heard the click of the hand-cuffs.

"They have to take you to the station for questioning." Nurse Joy said. The officers took me to the exit and opened up the door, letting the bright mid-day sun shine on me, causing me to squint. At this point I just dropped my head back and let out an annoyed "Uuuuugh" over the fact that all this was happening. The police men led me outside to their police car; which was parked right outside and stuffed me in the back. The police men got in on either sides and proceeded to drive me through the city. I wasn't afraid of being arrested. I knew I didn't abuse that… my Eevee. And all I needed to do was explain myself; prove my innocence. But more so was I annoyed with it all. I could be in the Pokemon Center right now, sitting by Eevee's bedside, trying to comfort her. But no, here I was in the back of a cop car being driven to the police station under false accusation of Pokemon abuse.

When we arrived, the police men got out, opened the door and pulled me out. They lead me up to the large building. The lobby wasn't very large, but it wasn't small either. There was a rug on the tiled floor leading up to the front desk. There were some chairs lining the walls of the room. There was only one other person in there, he was sitting on one of the chairs. One of the police officers took my bag and walked down the hallway that branched off of the lobby and then walked in one of the rooms with it. The other police man kept his hand around my arm as he walked me to the front desk. Behind it there was a female officer who was writing something down. When we reached the desk, she stopped writing and looked at us for a moment, then spoke.

"Is this the kid we just got a call about? The one who abused his Eevee?" It was almost like someone punched me when she said that. It made me mad and I clenched my fists.

"Yeah, this is the kid. Where do you want him?" The officer said casually, still keeping his tight grip on my arm.

"Jenny said she wanted to speak with him directly…" She said, pointing down the hallway with the pen she was just using to write with.

"Thanks Judy…" He said as he yanked me down the hallway. There were multiple doors lining either side of the hallway. At the end of the hallway, there was a final door. On the door there was a gold plate with the text "CEO" and directly under it, it said "Officer Jenny." The officer opened the door and rather harshly threw me in and I stumbled to keep my balance. I heard the door shut behind me.

I looked up to see a rather standard-looking office. I looked around as she motioned me to sit down. She didn't look at me when she motioned me; she continuously looked down at whatever she was writing. I sat down, adjusting my hands in an attempt to sit comfortably, for my hands were still hand-cuffed. I observed the room. It was your stereotypical office. There was a file cabinet in the corner with an assortment of magnets on it. Her desk was cluttered with papers. There was a lamp on one side of her desk and on the other side of the desk there was a picture of her countless sisters and cousins. For a while I just sat in the chair, the only sound that could be heard was the constant ticking of the clock on the wall. And finally she stopped writing and, looked up at me and broke the communicational silence.

"Do you know why you're here, Jake?" I could tell by her tone that she already didn't like me because of what I was being accused of.

"Yes, and I'm going to say right now that I didn't do anything. I was trying to save that Eevee."

"Ah, of course! You were trying to save the Eevee! At all makes sense now!" She said sarcastically, which made me angry. Then her tone became more stern. She slapped her hands on the desk and looked right at me, "Listen kid, do you think I was born yesterday? That Eevee had a broken leg, broken ribs and internal bleeding. Now do you expect me to believe that this just happened from some wild Pokemon battle?"

"No, because it didn't. Her previous owner did it to her; made her fight and kill for money…" I clenched my fist. Just thinking about what those people did to her and other Pokemon makes my blood boil. "Her previous owner mugged me; you see these marks on my face? That's from them. I would never abuse my Pokemon. And for more proof, look in my bag that you confiscated from me for "evidence." I just bought food and a Poke Ball for her. I saved that Eevee from a site of Pokemon underground trafficking."

"Pokemon underground trafficking?" Her voice was now the opposite of stern. "There have been more and more occasions of this… and they always happen right under our nose. Where were you? Where is that location for the trafficking?"

"I'm… not exactly sure. Once I got out, I just walked for about half a mile until I found the path…" She let out a sigh.

Officer Jenny just looked at me for a moment, as if studying me. I think she believed my story. "How do I know you're telling me the truth?"

"I would never hurt my Pokemon. You have to believe me. All I want to do is spend time with my Eevee."

She looked down and let out another sigh. "Alright… I believe you." She gets out of her chair and at the same time pulls keys off from around her belt. She walks behind me and unlicks the hand-cuffs. I stand up and put my hands in front of me, rubbing where the hand-cuffs had been.

"Thank you so much, and nothing is going on my record, right? I'd hate to have "accused of Pokemon abuse" on my record."

"Correct, you still have a clean slate." Officer Jenny said, smiling. "Would you like a ride back to the Pokemon Center?"

"Yes, thank you."

And with that we walked out. When we were in the lobby, Jenny told me to wait and she walked down the other hallway and came back a few minutes later with my bag. We both then walked outside and got in her cruiser. She started the car up and pretty soon we were on our way back to the Pokemon Center.

As soon as we got there, I jumped out of the car and burst through the front doors of the Pokemon Center, eager to see Eevee again. Nurse Joy gave me a dirty look, obviously thinking I was the one that abused her.

"What are you doing here?"

"I told you, I'm innocent. I want to see my Eevee."

Officer Jenny then walked up to the front counter; next to me. "He's telling the truth. Eevee's previous owner is the abuser."

"Oh," Nurse Joy said. "well in that case… you can follow me." She walked out from behind the counter and proceeded down the hallway. I stayed close behind. Eventually she came to a door and she opened it and I went in. I saw her. I saw my Eevee lying on a hospital bed. Her eyes were closed and she was hooked up to medical machines. Nurse Joy then closed the door, leaving me alone with her. I walked up to her bedside and smiled, still grateful she was alive. After a moment, she started to stir. Her eyes opened slowly at first, and then they snapped open. She started looking around the room and tried to sit up. It was obviously the first time she had been awake since she'd been here.

"Hey… calm down. It's okay." I say in a soothing tone, petting her head.

"W-Where am I?" I was a little bit confused by this question.

"You're in the Pokemon Center."

"P-Pokemon Center?" I was shocked by this response. _Had she never heard of or been to a Pokemon Center before? That couldn't have been true, could it? Did all of her previous owners never even once bring her here?_

"Yes, the people want to make you feel better."

"But… But they hurt me with needles and liquids… like my old master did…"

_Hurt her with needles and liquids like her old masters? She'd never been to a Pokemon Center before, so her old masters weren't giving her medicine, so what was she talked about?_ It thought for a moment, and then it hit me: steroids. Her owners had been pumping steroids in her blood stream to help her win the horrible fights. Again I felt angry. "This is different; it's going to make you feel better."

"W-What did they do to me? They d-didn't put me in the m-machines, d-did they?" Her voice was starting to tremble. I didn't know what her previous owners did. I didn't know what the "machines" were, and I didn't really want to know.

"No, they helped fix your wounds… see?" I uncover her arm from the blanket that Nurse Joy gave her. "See? Your arm's all better!" She held her arm up in front of her, inspecting it with a look of amazement on her face.

"How… How did they do that?" I smiled.

"With medicine and treatment… I told you they wouldn't hurt you. They also fixed your ribs and lung, so now you can breathe easier." She looked down; I could tell she was focusing on her breathing, to see if it still hurt to do so.

Nurse Joy walks in the room and looks at the monitors, then at me. "Your Eevee has recovered quite nicely. All I have to do is un-hook her from the medical devices and she'll be ready to leave!"

"That's great to hear, thank you, Nurse Joy."

She walked over to her and removed the IVs that were in her. Eevee then stands up slowly, and then sort of bounces on her once-broken leg to put pressure on it, looking down at it and realizing that it truly is fixed.

I walk over to her, while she's still looking down at her leg so she couldn't see me approaching her, and I pick her up. She flinches pretty badly, which makes me sad, for every time she does something like that, in this case flinch, it reminds me of all the abuse she's gone through…

I pick her up, holding her in my arms. "You're coming with me now, okay?" She didn't look at me and quietly replied.

"Yes, master…"

I didn't like that, her calling me "master." It sounded like I owned her. I didn't own her. Nobody could own a Pokemon. Pokemon aren't property, they're living, breathing creatures. Now in the lobby, I started to walk toward the front door when I heard Nurse Joy call out.

"Hey!" I turned around to look at her. "I'm sorry for the misunderstanding. Calling the police on you and all… but take care, okay?"

I showed a small smile. "Heh, it's alright… at least I have her now." I turned back around, heading for the door. It was evening so everything had a red-ish tint to it from the sunset. I started walking along the sidewalk, looking for a hotel to stay in for the night.


	4. Chapter 4- A Bond is Made

**Author's Notes: **Hey everyone! I'm back! Oooooh boy, a new chapter! What could possibly happen in this one? Are you as pumped as I am? And I thought it was coincidental that I wrote the part about them in a hotel WHILE I was in a hotel! SPOOKY! SO, without further adieu... Here's chapter 4! Have a read, give a review, I love you! PM me if you want to tell/ask me anything!

* * *

Chapter 4

A Bond is Made

I strolled through the town with Eevee in my arms. I needed to find a hotel or an inn to stay at for the night, the sun was getting low and it was getting dark. But even though it was getting late, the city was still pretty busy. There were still a lot of people walking around and cars constantly going up and down the road. All of the hotels virtually looked the same. So I just picked one that didn't look like a low-budget piece of crap to stay at. I found a decent-looking one and walked in. The lobby looked pretty nice, so I figured this was an okay enough place to stay at. I walked up to the lady at the front desk and bought a room for one night. She handed me a key with a tag on it that said A13. With Eevee still in my arms, I roamed through the hallways until I located the room with the plaque "A13" on the door, unlocked it and walked in. The room was actually pretty nice. It had a decent sized bed; probably a queen size. There was a flat-screen TV on the stand, and there was a little kitchen with a stove and a microwave next to it. There were also a few pictures on the wall to make it more like a home.

I swung my bag around my shoulder and set it on the floor, leaning it up against the wall in the kitchen part of the room. Then I set Eevee on the bed and plopped down next to her and let out a relaxed sigh, glad to finally be able to relax. _Wow… in the last 48 hours I've been mugged, arrested, accused of Pokemon abuse… all on the first two days of my journey. Well… at least it was as interesting as I'd always imagined it. _I grabbed the remote off the nightstand and flipped on the TV. As usually there was nothing on. Hotels never have that many channels, and that ones they did have, there's never anything good on. So I just flipped it to the news. It was something about a little kid who caught his first Pokemon and how ecstatic he was and how proud his parents were. _…wait a minute… "how he caught his first Pokemon"… That's right! I haven't caught Eevee yet. She was still technically still wild. _I sat up to go get my bag when I was stopped by a pain in my abdomen. I made a grimace and put my hand to my stomach when I heard it growl. I looked at Eevee, who was still lying at the foot of the bed where I first her. She was quiet, but I should probably expect that from her, considering what she's gone through… So I figured I'd talk to her first and maybe she'd open up a bit.

"Ugh… I'm starving… Would you like something to eat, Eevee?"

"Yes, master…" _There it was again… I don't like it._

I got up and walked over to where I set my bag and set it on the counter. I removed all the ingredients from it and laid them out on the counter and took out the incredibly convenient step-by-step instructional paper on how to prepare a delicious Pokemon meal fit for an Eevee. I closely followed the directions, cutting and dicing, adding spices to the pot. Once that was done, all I needed to do was let it cook. So while it was, I made myself a sandwich. As I was assembling my dinner, I heard something on the TV, which was still on the news, that almost made me freeze. I walked over in front of the TV to hear it better.

"…and another location for the rising epidemic of illegal Pokemon fights and slave trade has been found a couple of miles off of Jubilife City, thanks to one boy who was falsely accused of abusing his Pokemon. When arrested and questioned, the location of the site was revealed and the boy was released with no charges. But when officers arrived to investigate, they had already left the scene. All officers found were beer cans and blood all over the ground. If you have any information on this, you can call in at-"

Click, I shut it off. I didn't want to hear about it. I absolutely hated the thought of all those people abusing all those Pokemon, like Eevee. I looked down at her and her head was up, eyes were closed and her ears were down. She must have smelled her food… _Her food!_ I ran over and took the pot off the burner and looked at the clock on the stove to see how long it was on. Thankfully it was only a couple of minutes over. So it was pretty much cooked to perfection. I poured it into a dish and finished making my sandwich. I walked back next to the bed; sandwich in one hand, the dish in the other.

"Alright, eat up Eevee. You're probably starving." I said as I set the dish on the floor next to the bed. Then I sat on the bed and took the first bite of my sandwich. I watched Eevee as she jumped down off the bed. But she didn't just walk up and start eating like I thought she would. Rather than she slowly approached it, sniffing it. _No… don't tell me she'd never had Poke Block before. I mean never being to a Pokemon Center is one thing… but never eating food that was meant for Pokemon? What did she eat? _I closely watched her as she crept toward the dish. Once she was at the dish, she looked at it for a moment, smelled it, and finally took a bite. Very shortly after she took that bite, she picked her head up and for the first time since I got her, I could see a slight smile on her face. I could even see a sense of joy in her eyes. It caused a smile to come to my face. Once she swallowed the bite she took, she spoke.

"W-What is this food you've given me?" She said as she looked at me. But I didn't get to answer. Just as quickly as her smile came, it went away. And she put her head back down and she spoke again, this time with a detectible note of fear in her voice. "I-I'm sorry for speaking without being s-spoken t-to…"

_That's_ _why she was so quite… her old owner had told her not to speak unless spoken to. Her old owner… I swear if I ever meet him… _I let out a sigh, then reached my hand down and started to pet her. "Hey…" I said softly. "It's not like that anymore… if you want to say something, don't hesitate to do so."

"Yes, master."

"And that's another thing: don't call me "master"… I'm not your master, I'm your friend." I said while still petting her, smiling.

"Yes, ma-"

"Jake… Call me Jake." I said, smiling. "By the way, what's your name?"

"I… I don't have a name… My master never game me one…" My smile faded and once again, I began to feel bad for her. _This poor Eevee… not a soul in the world has cared for her. Well that was going to change, now that she was mine._

I thought for a long while, petting her the whole time, and then I finally spoke. "I'll call you Rose. Because roses are beautiful and delicate… and I know your previous masters have probably never made you feel like either of those things, but you are a beautiful and delicate Pokemon. But a rose has thorns, sharp and painful thorns. And they represent the abuse and torture you've gone through; having to fight and kill against your own will..." She just looked at the floor, as if lost in her thoughts. I stopped petting her and rubbed my fingers together. They felt greasy and gritty. _She needs a bath; she probably hadn't been washed in… I don't know how long._

I stuffed the last bit of my sandwich in my mouth, and then I got up and walked over to the bathroom and started running water for a bath. I let the water fill the tub, making sure it wasn't too hot, like a parent would for a child. Once it was ready I walked out of the bathroom and looked down at Rose, who had finished her food, which I took as a compliment. She was lying down next to the now-empty dish. I walked up to her and petted her again.

"Hey, it's bath time, okay? I'm going to make you all clean." As soon as I said "bath time," I instantly felt her tense up. "What's wrong?" She didn't answer me and slowly backed away until she bumped into the wall. She was staring at me right in the eyes and I stared back at her. I could see fear in her eyes.

"N-No… P-Please, not a b-bath…"

"There's nothing to be afraid of, it's going to make you feel good."

Her eyes got wide when I said that, then she tightly closed them and put her head down. "N-No! T-That's what my last master said… he wanted to give me a bath… he said it would make me feel good… b-but then he t-touched me… touched me in p-places I didn't l-like…" Hearing her say that crushed my heart. _Rose was molested… By her previous master…_ She opened her eyes again and was looking back at me. There were tears in her eyes, which just further shattered my heart. I attempted to soothe her, I spoke in a warm and loving voice.

"Listen, Rose… Your previous master has treated you horribly. But you can trust me, I will never do anything to hurt you, I promise." There were still tears in her eyes.

"Y-You promise…?"

"Cross my heart." I said as I did the motion. "Now let's get you cleaned up, okay?" I picked her up and started walking toward the bathroom. Her muscles were still tense. I set her in the warm tub. "I'm going to make you all clean." I said calmly, still trying to re-assure her. I looked on the little shelf in the room. As I expected there were little bottles of shampoo and conditioner, but next to it there were different bottles with the labels "Pokemon Shampoo" and "Pokemon Conditioner." It must have been designed for the fur of different Pokemon. I grabbed it, opened it up and poured some water on her back to get it wet, and then I started to gently rub my shampoo-covered fingers through her fur. I finally felt her muscles loosen up and she let out a relaxed sigh. I started to scrub, getting dirt and grease out. There were spots in her fur that were black and hard from dried blood. I scrubbed all the dried blood out and continued to scrub all of her fur. Once she was virtually covered in suds and bubbles, I grabbed the detachable shower head and rinsed her off. She had a smile on her face, and I think her smiles were contagious. Her eyes were also closed. I'd imagine it would feel nice and relaxing. I repeated the same process with the conditioner, so her fur would be soft and fluffy. I pulled the plug in the tub and pulled Rose out of it and set her next to it. She shook to her the water off of her, like many Pokemon of her shape do. I laughed, squinting my eyes to keep water from flying into them. I grabbed the towel off the rack and wrapped her up in it, drying her off as best as I could. After she was pretty dry, I set the towel on the ground and walked out of the bathroom. I grabbed my backpack, which was still on the counter, and set it next to the bed. After that I jumped on the bed and put my hands behind my head. After a moment I saw Rose trot out of the bathroom, which make me smile, because she didn't trudge out and drag her paws like she had been. Rather than she happily trotted out. _Maybe she was starting to trust me. _She lied down on the floor next to the bed. Looking at her reminded me: she wasn't technically my Pokemon yet. She still needed a Poke Ball.

I reached down and dug through my bag until I found one of the Poke Balls I bought earlier, held it up and clicked the button, causing it to grow from its small, compact size to the regular size of a Poke Ball. She picked her head off of her paws and look at it. With her not knowing what a Pokemon center is OR what Poke Blocks is… I wouldn't be surprised if she didn't know what a Poke Ball was either, so I asked her.

"Do you know what this is?" I asked, pointing to the Poke Ball with the hand not holding it. As I expected, she just curiously looked at it and shook her head, which told me she didn't. "It's a Poke Ball. Humans use them to capture Pokemon. Once you've been caught, nobody else can capture you in another one unless I release you."

"C-Capture me? I-In that little thing?!" Her voice was starting to sound fearful.

"Yes, but they're made to. The can capture any Pokemon, regardless of size." She just stared at the spherical device, so I continued. "This is a choice. I'm not making you do anything you don't want to do." She continued to stare at it for a little while longer, then answered.

"O-Okay… Will it hurt?"

"No, it won't hurt…" I say as I lower my hand with the Poke ball in it. "…but you may feel a bit funny. But once it's done, you can come right back out, okay? All you have to do is push the button."

"Okay…" She timidly got closer to the Poke Ball. She stuck her paw out and slowly inched it closer to the button, until her paw was right in front of it. She glanced at me for a moment, then back at the Poke ball and pressed it. As soon as it was pressed, it snapped open and the red mist quickly came out and started to engulf her. She gasped and tried to back away from it. It must have scared her. Her color quickly changed from chocolate-brown and creamy-tan to red as she was swept into the ball, where it finally snapped shut and fell to the floor. But then it started to shake; she was resisting. And of course a resisting Pokemon at full health was virtually guaranteed to brake free. And with that the Poke Ball opened and Rose came flying back out and formed on the floor. Once she was completely solid again, she stumbled back a little and was breathing heavily. Capture failed.

"Hey, there's no need to be afraid. I promised I would never do anything to hurt you, remember? Just push the button and relax… it doesn't take very long, but if you resist, the capture will fail, understand?" I petted her head lovingly. "You have to trust me, okay? …Do you trust me?"

"I-I don't know…" I guess I expected an answer like that.

"Just close your eyes and take a deep breath." She did exactly that. Then after a moment, with her eyes still closed, I asked her "Are you ready?"

"…R-Ready…" I lightly tapped the Poke Ball on her forehead, repeating the capture process. But this time the ball didn't shake. After a moment I head a "click" and I knew that this time it had succeeded; she was officially my Pokemon. She came whirling back out of the Poke Ball and formed back on the ground, this time not only stumbling back but also falling down. "Ugh… that does feel weird…" I let out a small chuckle.

"See? That wasn't so bad, now was it?"

"Yeah, you were right… I-I was just afraid that… it would hurt…"

"Aw…" I walked over to her, for she was still lying down, and started to pet her. "It's alright, like I said: I would never hurt you." I said lovingly as I scratched her behind her ear. I noticed a smile form on her face as she closed her eyes and leaned her head into my hand. I smiled too. "You like that, girl?" She nodded her head. After a while I stood back up, and Rose did the same. I looked down and saw her yawn. And because yawns are always contagious, I yawned too. "It's getting late… we should probably be getting to bed."

I walked over to the bed and jumped in it; it was nice and soft. I leaned over and was about to turn the lamp on the nightstand off, but I stopped when I looked down and saw Rose lying on the floor with her head on her paws.

"What do you think you're doing?" I said in a joking manner. I scooted over and patted my hand on the bed. "Get up here on the bed with me!" So she picked herself up and leaped from the floor to the bed and lied on the bed; directly to the left of me. I put my arm around her and started to pet her. She flinched when I first made contact with her. She still wasn't used to affection of any kind. I just continued to pet her and she closed her eyes. _You're an adorable little Pokemon… I can't imagine anyone who would want to hurt you. _And now that I had just bathed her, her fur was extraordinarily soft. Like a cute little cloud. After a while I heard her snoring, and soon after that I was asleep too…

I was awoken by the sunlight that trickled through the blinds. I yawned as I sat up to stretch. I walked over to the blinds and opened them up, making the dim room bright with the morning sun. Rose was still fast asleep on the bed. I smiled as I walked over to her and started to pet her head. I spoke to her in the same whispered tone that a mother would to her child when he need to be woken up for school.

"Rose… it's time to get up… c'mon sleepy head." Her eyes gradually opened, but then she jumped up and backed away from me with her head down and eyes tightly closed.

"I-I'm awake!" _…Just like in the forest… they must have beat her or something if she didn't get up when her current master wanted..._

"Calm down… it's okay. I'm not going to hurt you." She slowly opened her eyes again and looked around, as if trying to remember where she was. After looking around the room, she looked at me and let out what sounded like a sigh of relief. "Just remember: as long as you're with me, I'll keep you safe. Now how about some breakfast, hmm?" She simply nodded and answered

"Yes, please." I think that even after seeing it was me, she was still frightened from usually being abused every day.

So I gathered my things and put them in my bag, I put my Poke Balls, including Rose's on my belt. I put my shoes on, swung my backpack around my shoulders and headed for the door. Rose jumped off the bed and followed behind me. We left the room and headed for the lobby. When we got to the lobby, I saw that it was one of those hotels where they provide you with breakfast. Upon entering the area, I was greeting by one of the workers with a "Good morning!" They had a nice little buffet that consisted of eggs, sausage, biscuits, and salad. Parallel to it, across the room was another buffet. But this one consisted of an assortment of different Pokemon food. I fixed myself a plate, got some orange juice and set them down on a large table. All the while Rose was walking next to me. I walked back over to the Pokemon buffet and grabbed one of the styrofoam bowls. They really didn't have any variety, just the same general Pokemon food. After the bowl was filled with it, I took it and set it on the large table next to my plate. Rose jumped up on the table and smelled her food for a moment, then started eating it. I still couldn't believe she wasn't used to even seeing Pokemon food. _What did they feed her?_ I started eating my food as well. Rose and I weren't the only ones at the large table. There were two other trainers sitting at the table with their Pokemon. One of the men was sitting across from me with his Riolu sitting on the table. They were both smiling as his trainers handed him a piece of Pokemon food and he happily ate it. The other trainer was sitting to my right. He was sitting with his Abra. The whole room had a nice layout. There were many small tables where other guests were sitting and enjoying breakfast. The table I sat at was larger and shaped more like a rectangle because it was right in front of a mounted TV which had the early morning news shows on, unlike all the other tables, which were much smaller and circular. After we were both about halfway done with our food. The trainer next to me spoke.

"What a cutie…" He extended his hand toward Rose, probably to pet her. Rose was still eating and her back was toward him, so she couldn't see him. I quickly grabbed his hand before he could touch her. He gave me a strange look. I leaned a bit toward him and spoke in a hushed tone; so Rose couldn't hear me.

"Please, don't touch her."

"Why not?" He whispered back.

"She's had a hard life, and she's not exactly trusting of… well… anyone."

"Why? What'd you do?"

"_I_ didn't do anything. I saved this Eevee from underground trafficking."

"That's horrible!"

"Yeah… I don't want to talk about it."

"Okay… anyways," He was no longer whispering and he extended his hand. "I'm Andrew, nice to meetcha!" I shook his hand.

"I'm Jake, nice to meet you too." After that there was kind of an awkward silence, so I spoke to him again. "So… you have an Abra?"

"Oh, yeah!"

"How did you manage to get him? I hear Abra are really hard to catch, because they always flee from battle."

"Yeah, but instead of me coming to him, he came to me. Alright, so one day I'm walking in the forest, right? And out of nowhere a Mightyena jumps out and attacks me! I'm screaming and trying to get him off; I thought I was done for! When suddenly the Mightyena just stopped attacking me and stumbled around a bit and ran away! Now I had no idea why he did that, but I was glad has was gone. It turns out this here Abra used Psychic on him! It must have scared him or somethin', because he just ran off! Now I was bleedin' pretty bad. Even though the Mightyena was gone, I still thought I was gonna die. But then this Abra, the same one who attacked the Mightyena, walked out of the bushes and up to me. But then he did something I didn't know was possible: he grabbed on to me and uses Teleport WITH me! Can you believe it?! He warped me to the hospital and they fixed me up! Yep, since then we've been best friends! True story!"

"Wow, did that really happen?" By the time he finished telling me his story, Rose and I had both finished our breakfast.

"Yep! We've been best pals ever since…" He put his hand down and pet his Abra. I stood up and grabbed both Rose's and my trash and threw it away. Rose jumped off the table and walked next to me. I walked up to the front desk, checked out and gave them the key. I was about to walk out the door when I stopped and looked at Andrew.

"Hey, it was nice meeting you, Andrew."

"Oh, yeah, you too!" And with that Rose and I walked out the door.

We started walking on the sidewalk of the busy city. It was still just as busy as it was last night. There were many people walking up and down the sidewalk. There were also many stands set up along the sidewalk with people selling little trinkets and small things. I glanced at the assortment of things they were selling each time we passed a different stand. As we walked past one of the stands, I saw something that caught my eye. I walked over and looked at it. Sitting on display, along with many other things, was a hair clip. On that clip was a beautiful rose with a few leaves placed around it. _This would be perfect for Rose…_ I picked up the clip and purchased it from the salesman. I made my way out of the crowded area around the stands until we were out of everybody's way and there were virtually no people walking through there, which was only a couple of yards away. I knelt down next to Rose. Again, when I knelt down next to her, she flinched. It wasn't necessarily as bad as before, but it was still a flinch.

"Here Rose, I got this for you…" I said as I petted her. I took the clip and placed it at the base of her right ear and snapped it in place. "Aw, you look adorable." She giggled and blushed a bit. "Come see what you look like!" I said, walking over to a puddle on the ground. Rose trotted over to it and looked into it at her reflection.

"It's… beautiful!" Rose exclaimed as she smiled. I smiled too and proceeded to pet her.

"I'm glad you like it! But we should probably get going, so we don't waste any daylight." And with that I stood up and Rose and I started walking on the sidewalk, weaving through all of the people. After making our way through the sea of people, we finally made it to the end of the city, where we started walking on the next route.

It was a beautiful day. The sun was out, causing small streams of light to trickle through the openings in branches. It wasn't too hot, the sun felt nice on my skin; like a blanket. Sounds of different Pokemon echoed all around. From the chirping of Pidgey and Starly, to the buzzing of nearby Yanma. There were many small Pokemon playing around, I saw some Pichu wrestling around and some Bonsly running around as well. After we had been walking for a while, the silence between us was broken, and much to my surprise: it was done by Rose.

"Permission to speak, Jake…?" _Well… at least she didn't call me "master"… _

"Permission granted… but you don't need to ask to speak. If you want to say something, then you go ahead and say it."

"Okay… so… Why are you so nice to me…?"

When she said that, I felt as if one thousand rocks had fallen on me, hitting me with a sudden realization: Not a soul had given her any love or affection. She has lived an awful life of abuse and torture. Never being able to share happiness with anyone, never having anyone to comfort her. I felt tears beginning to run down my face. I stopped walking, letting a few tears run down, and then I embraced her in a hug, closing my eyes, which pushed more tears out. I wanted to make her feel loved, something she'd never experienced before. I held the hug for a good while, then moved back and looked at her right in the eyes.

"Rose…" I said, my voice trembling a bit. "Listen… I know you probably feel like no one does, but I care about you… And I don't want anything bad to happen to you ever again. And I will try my best to protect you… I promise you."

She stared back into my eyes for a moment, and then closed them, pushing a few tears out and pushing herself back into my arms and started crying. _I think she finally understood… She finally understood that I cared… that I was there for her._ I just sat there, embracing her in a hug for a long while, tears running until she finally pulled back and looked me with tears in her eyes.

"T-Thank you, Jake…." Her voice was shaky.

"Y-You're welcome, Rose…" my voice was just as shaky as her's. We stared at each other for a moment, and then I rubbed her head and stood back up and started walking again.

At this point we had been in the forest a while. Often I would glance down at Rose and see her happily trotting along. But as I watched her, her trot gradually got slower and converted into a trudge. She even started to trail behind me and her head was now down. I stopped walking and looked at her a moment, her head was still down and at this point she had completely stopped walking.

"Rose? Are… are you okay?"

"I… don't know… I-I can't feel my…" And with that her knees buckled and she dropped to the ground...

* * *

**Author's Notes: **OOOOHHH CLIFFHANGER! What happened to Rose? Why did she suddenly drop to the ground? Stay tuned...


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